Now that Prussia had the upper hand on the battlefield, under the strong request of the Government of Berlin, the negotiation venue was set in London.
At first, they wanted to set it in Berlin, but the Russians did not agree. The Tsarist government still wanted to save some face.
The Russians were still not convinced. They insisted on setting the negotiation venue in a neutral country to prove that they did not lose the war.
This was self-deception, but it also involved political games. The alternative negotiation venues were Vienna and London. Now that the negotiation venue was set in London, it meant that the Tsarist government was at a disadvantage in this round of political games.
With a bang, the Foreign Minister of the Russian Empire, Clarence Ivanov, threw a cup of coffee out, and the coffee splashed all over the floor.
Since the defeat at the front line, he had visited European countries to seek diplomatic support, but the results were very touching. The good reputation of the Russian Empire directly made most European countries stand against them.
Originally, they planned to negotiate with the warring countries separately and use diplomatic means to defeat them one by one. Now, with the intervention of the British, everyone was summoned to London, and an anti-Russian alliance appeared.
The people of Prussia acted as the leader of the alliance, and the British coordinated the interests of all parties to form a joint delegation to negotiate with the Russians.
"Explain the situation to the domestic power generation and let the government make a decision as soon as possible."
Clarence Ivanov's political mind was still very bright. He did not ask for Alexander II Of Russia's opinion, but let the government make the decision.
This meant that the senior officials of the Tsarist government had to bear the blame for the failure of the war, and Alexander II Of Russia was removed.
There was no such thing as a scapegoat. The failure of the war was originally the fault of the bureaucratic group, especially the logistics, which was bound to be liquidated after the war.
The senior officials of the government also had to bear the blame, and many people would be implicated and lose their jobs. Including Clarence Ivanov himself, after the war, they had to go home to retire.
If they wanted to retire safely, they had to first protect the political power of the Tsarist government. The slogan of the rebel army was "Clean up the emperor's side, punish the corrupt officials." They were all so-called corrupt officials, and if the rebel army took power, they would be dead.
Everyone was born into great nobility, and it did not matter if they lost politics temporarily, they could recover in a few years. If it did not work, there was still the next generation, and protecting the Tsar was protecting their own interests.
…
In the Palace of Vienna, Franz asked with concern, "Have you figured out the purpose of the British?"
All the major warring countries gathered in London, and the right to speak in diplomacy gradually tilted towards the British. The position of the Government of London was crucial to this negotiation.
To some extent, the British were robbing Austria's interests. If they were to negotiate separately, the negotiations on the Prussian war and the Turkish-Russian war would have to be approved by Vienna first.
Austria's influence in Central Asia and the Far East was limited, and their right to speak in diplomacy was dragged down.
Franz wasn't worried about missing out on this opportunity to expand his diplomatic influence. It wasn't time to show off yet, and it might not be a good thing to increase his international influence in advance.
However, it was still important to figure out the British's plan. Being led by the nose was not something Franz wanted to see.
The Russians, the Prussia, and the Osman, Franz had already arranged their paths. Now that the British had suddenly interfered, the direction of the future became blurred again.
The advantage of foresight in politics had now been used up, and Franz could only rely on his own strength to play the political game.
Foreign Minister Wesenberg replied, "The Government of London wants to completely interrupt the threat of the Russians to them, and the preliminary judgment is that they should do four things:
First, let the Central Asian region be independent, and remove the threat of India;
Second, support the Kingdom of Prussia to annex the Baltic Sea region, strengthen the strength of this chess piece, and let them have the ability to protect themselves;
Third, let Poland be an independent country, and cause us trouble;
Fourth, interrupt the expansion of the Russians in the Far East, and ensure that they have a dominant position in the East. "
Of these four points, only Poland's independence made Austria uncomfortable, and the others were within Franz's acceptable range. Austria's assimilation had been going on for many years, and Poland's independence would have a certain impact, but it was also within a controllable range.
Even if someone were to cause trouble, the worst that could happen was a collective exile. It wasn't like Franz hadn't done this kind of thing before. If the people were gone, the problem would be gone.
The troublesome thing was that with Da Bobo's death-seeking nature, it was estimated that it wouldn't be long before he made a territorial claim to Austria.
During the interim government period, there were such calls, but they were busy with the war with Russia, so they temporarily suppressed this idea.
After a moment of contemplation, Franz made a decision. Poland's independence couldn't be stopped, and there was no need to interfere.
It didn't matter if they shouted slogans, Franz wouldn't care about them anyway. If they were impatient, they could directly use force to solve the conflict.
The possibility of a conflict in a short period of time was not high. The difference in strength between the two sides was serious, and the Polish interim government took over a mess, so they didn't have the guts to challenge Austria.
It was uncertain in the future. After they solved their internal problems, someone behind them would encourage them to do something stupid.
"If that's all, we can acquiesce. Prussia and Poland's territory can be larger, and the more they take now, the stronger the Tsarist government's desire for revenge in the future.
With the end of the war, the conflict between Prussia and Poland should also occur, adding fuel to the fire. The Lithuanian region used to be part of Greater Poland, so let the Polish nationalists fight with Prussia. "
This was how international conflicts came about. You would bury a nail for conflict, and I would bury a nail for conflict. In the end, there would be nails everywhere, and international disputes would arise.
Now, it left a hidden danger of conflict for Russia, Prussia, and Poland, and in the future, the three countries would become mortal enemies.
If the three countries fought with each other, Austria's northern border would be stable. No matter how the international situation changed, Franz could find at least one ally.
The only regret was that the Osman Empire didn't perform well this time and didn't complete the script designed for them. Otherwise, Franz could go to the Holy Land to be crowned.
Franz didn't lack a crown, but the religious significance of Jerusalem was different! After recovering this place, Franz would be a saint in the Christian world, which would bring great prestige.
Now that the Osman Empire's strength still existed, Franz naturally wouldn't make a move. Jerusalem couldn't increase the strength of the country, and spending hundreds of millions of military expenses for a false reputation was still too high.
They also had to consider the international impact. If they didn't do it well, they would be taken advantage of, and the loss would outweigh the gain.
For example, in this Prussia war, the biggest winner was the British. Not only did they suppress their competitor, the Russian Empire, solve the land threat facing India, but they also supported a few new chess pieces.
The soon-to-be established Nordic Federation, Poland, and several Khans in the Central Asian region were all chess pieces created by the British.
And the price they paid was only the repayment of loans. Simply put, the people of Prussia helped the British fight a war, and they had to bear the military expenses themselves.
Because of the debt, the finance of the Kingdom of Prussia would inevitably fall into the control of the British in the future. If it was done properly, it would be difficult for the Kingdom of Prussia to get rid of the British influence.
On the surface, the harvest of the war gave the Kingdom of Prussia a road to a strong country. However, the road was still bumpy, and they had to go through the Polish Federation and the German Confederation.
This was comparable to the difficulty of the unification of the small German Region by Prussia in the original Time and Space.
It was not completely impossible. At least the people of Russia were disabled, and they couldn't interfere with their actions for ten or twenty years. There was no need to find a way to appease the people of Russia.
As for the Fao, the two countries were still the same as in the original Time and Space. It was impossible to solve the problem without a war. Whether it was Vienna or Paris, they would not watch a strong Prussia rise.
Prime Minister Felix said, "Your Majesty, it is necessary for us to forcibly take back Silesia.
After this war, the strength of the Kingdom of Prussia will inevitably increase. In order to avoid the emergence of a strong Prussia, we must intervene.
If possible, it is best to take back Prussian Saxony to weaken the strength of the Kingdom of Prussia. "
This was indeed a way. As long as they took Silesia and Prussian Saxony from the hands of Prussia, then the two duchies of Schleswig and Holstein that the people of Prussia had gained this time would be tantamount to nothing.
This was only on the surface. In terms of resources and industrial development potential, the value of these areas was far greater than that of the two duchies of Schleswig and Holstein.
Then the harvest of the Kingdom of Prussia this time would only be the Baltic Sea area. After deducting the losses in the war, their actual gains would be little.
The Baltic Sea area was not small, and the resources were also considered passable, but there was no main ethnic group. Unless the Government of Berlin diversified, assimilation would be a problem.
If this problem was not solved, the growth of the strength of the Kingdom of Prussia would be fat. Now that Austria made a move, it could be considered as taking drastic measures.
Franz thought for a moment and said, "It is not easy to achieve this step. The Government of Berlin will not easily compromise. In the current international situation, it is not convenient for us to directly use force.
The possibility of relying on diplomatic means to make the Kingdom of Prussia make concessions is almost zero. "
This was the truth. The Government of Berlin was not a theocratic government. It was not so weak that it would cede territory just because it wanted to.
Using force to force would also damage Austria's international image, cause fear in the European countries, and fall into a state of diplomatic isolation.
So from the beginning, Franz did not intend to take back Silesia, let alone Prussian Saxony.
Others were afraid of the Kingdom of Prussia becoming stronger, but Franz was not afraid. It took time to integrate power, and there was no doubt that he would not leave that much time for the Kingdom of Prussia.
Franz had always believed that the best way to defeat the enemy was not to go to war directly; it was to constantly put pressure on the opponent and make them make mistakes under pressure.
The Kingdom of Prussia risked starting this war because it could not withstand the pressure. They chose to rely on gambling to break out of the situation. The first step had been taken, and the second step was not far off.
Waiting for the enemy to make a mistake before making a move would have a much smaller price to pay. If there was no Kingdom of Prussia, what excuse would Franz find to make a move against the German Confederation?
One had to know that the German Confederation was very obedient. Most of the states had a good relationship with Austria, and there was no chance for Franz to solve the problem by force.
Internal problems were far more difficult to solve than external problems. The emperor still had to have the people's hearts. It was the same for the Kingdom of Prussia. If he could not gain the people's hearts, then he did not need it.
Franz did not want to create a group of rebels who specialized in destruction every day. The lessons of history had taught him that any emperor who ignored the people's hearts would eventually pay a painful price.
Prime Minister Felix replied, "It is indeed not easy, but we still need to try. Even if we cannot take it back in the end, we must let the people see the government's determination to take back their homeland. "
This "people" was obviously not only the people, but also the Saxon government. Since the outbreak of the Prussian War, the Saxon government had been working hard to take back Prussian Saxony. The Government of Vienna also had to consider the wishes of the Saxon people.
In addition to Saxony, there were many Austrians who could not forget about Silesia, including many people in the court of Vienna, who advocated the recovery of Silesia.
Originally, the measure they adopted was to secretly support the Russians and borrow the hands of the Russians to recover these areas. Now that the Tsarist government was defeated, this plan was ruined.
These people began to lobby the Government of Vienna again. Obviously, Prime Minister Felix was also influenced, or he himself was a supporter of the recovery of Silesia.
Although the hope was not high, he still wanted to give it a try. If it failed, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would work for nothing, but it was not a loss to put on a show. If it succeeded, it would be a profit.
After understanding the cause and effect, Franz nodded, indicating that he agreed.
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